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Characteristics

Weight: male 143 lb (65 kg), female 99 lb (45 kg).

Height: male 29½–33½ in (75–85 cm), female 27½–31½ in (70–80 cm).

Usually without horns.

This is a beautiful pure white dairy goat: a native of Switzerland usually found in the cantons of Appenzell and St Gallen, and a rare and endangered breed dating back many hundreds of years.

In the 1980s it was infected by a terrible disease, Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE), which forced it to the point of extinction. In 2000 only 677 were registered, and in 2011 this had increased to 1,479. This was due to the help and support of the FOA, the Swiss Goat Breeders Association and ProSpecieRara, the Swiss Preservation Foundation which supports the breeding and cultivation of traditional animals and crops.

They are bred mainly for their milk, which contains 2.9% fat and 2.7% protein, a perfect base for cheese-making. In close cooperation with ProSpecieRara and the Coop supermarket of Switzerland, innovative cheese-maker Matthias Koch has created a new cheese made solely from Appenzell goats’ milk, which has been extremely successful. With a guaranteed market for the milk the farmers are enlarging their herds to keep up with increasing demand. The beautiful Appenzell is now out of danger.